Interesting take on a Chinese zoo that has something nobody has ever seen before. A select few are chosen to witness a preview with a somewhat horrific end.
This book read like a chapter out of Jurassic Park and really was not for me, but it did have an interesting storyline.
I thank the author, publisher and Netgalley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review

Jurassic Park, but with Dragons? I love it. I absolutely devoured this book, and I normally don't pick up science fiction. Super violent, but with great action scenes. I know its fiction, but Reilly really makes it come to life, along with the culture clashes between the USA and China. CJ was a really well fleshed out character, and quite the badass. I wish there was a whole series of CJ. Thanks to Netgalley for the free copy in exchange for an unbiased review.

The Chinese are nothing if they are not good at keeping secrets. For forty years they have been preparing a zoo - a zoo unlike any other in the world with only one animal.

As the Chinese government prepares to finally open this special zoo to the public, they first invite some Western reporters and some VIPs to come and experience the zoo and to meet the animals ... dragons. Among the guests is Dr. Cassandra Jane ‘CJ’ Cameron, a writer for National Geographic and an expert on reptiles.

The zoo officials are excited to show off what they've been working so hard and so long for. From the many precautions to provide for a space big enough that the dragons can fly but stay contained, as well as the devices used to control the wild creatures to keep them from attacking.

But CJ sees something in one of the creatures when the controlling device (like a dog shock collar) is used. Could it be recognition or even intelligence?

Not long after the VIP guests enter into the zoo itself, the dragons revolt. But this isn't a wild, sudden frenzy, this appears to be a coordinated assault on the zoo workers (and VIPs) with the aim of breaking free of the zoo restraints and heading out into the world. It's going to take a reptile expert, like CJ, along with a little luck, to secure the dragons and get out alive.

With the first couple of chapters I really started off enjoying this book. It took me a little bit by surprise (I knew nothing about the story), but in a very good way. But the further I got in the book the less enamored I became.

The book is very straightforward - no subplots to speak of - it just rolls forward, full tilt, and once the action starts (it doesn't take long) each chapter tries to top the one before it with hard-hitting, fast action. You can practically see the CGI in your head.

The two big problems here are:

1) This feels like it was written for the big screen - but not in a good way. It feels formulaic. Anyone who's watched a blockbuster film or two could probably predict what will happen next in this book.

2) This feels very much like Jurassic Park but with dragons instead of carnivorous dinosaurs. There's nothing particularly wrong with Jurassic Park - it's just we already have it.

I liked that summer blockbuster feel to the book at the start, but it didn't really develop and instead became a stereotypical trope and predictable, and even, dare I say it, a tad unbelievable. Zoo workers are killed left and right, but that's okay, we didn't get to know any of them anyway - they were just redshirts, there to create some slaughter and havoc.

Looking for a good book? If you like your fiction to read like a summer blockbuster movie, complete with predictable outcomes, stereotypes, and common tropes, then The Great Zoo of China by Matthew Reilly should be in your 'to-be-read' stack of books.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

The Great Zoo of China by Matthew Reilly

539 Pages
Publisher: Gallery, Threshold, Pocket Books, Gallery Books
Release Date: January 27, 2015

Fiction, General Fiction (Adult), Sci. Fi, Fantasy, Dragons, Action, Adventure

Dr. Cassandra Jane “CJ” Cameron, a doctor of veterinarian medicine from the University of Florida is also an expert of reptiles. She writes for National Geographic and is invited to visit a new zoo opening in China. The zoo has been in the making for forty years. The location of the zoo took twenty years to dig out. The Chinese government is touting the zoo as the first of its kind.

The book has a steady pace, the characters are developed, and it is written in the third person point of view. The book is very similar to Jurassic Park but instead of dinosaurs, they created dragons. I like the character of CJ Cameron. She is a strong independent woman. If you like books with a lot of action and adventure with creatures, you will enjoy this book.

I received a free copy from NetGalley. Jurassic Park, except in China, which makes it a little political and with dragons instead of dinosaurs, but it was entertaining, but it would be a very bloody movie if they stayed true to the book.

An excellent title by author Matthew Reilly, and one that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. Reilly has a knack for kinetic, cinematic-style action sequences, and matches them to a fast-paced plot that pulls the reader along to experience an amazing journey

Highly recommended.

The premise, the dragons, the science, why China of all places; I really liked this. The downside to this book was that I found too many too-close-to-death instances: some were good, others felt more convenient for the action, simply a bit overused action-mechanism.

If Jurassic Park is more your style of scifi, Matthew Reilly’s The Great Zoo of China is for you. In this scifi adventure, the Chinese government has quietly funded the scientific development of dragons, while keeping this secret from the outside world. Now, they’re ready to share this amazing creation with the outside world. The first foroegn visitors arrive to see these marvelous mythical beasts, and naturally, the visitors are assured that everything is completely safe and they’re definitely not in any danger from the dragons… This is a modern thriller in the Michael Crichton style.

This novel has a refershing and strong female lead, the writing is very technical and its a mox of jurassic park meets dragons.

I had a hard time with this book. The main character has a very "Mary Sue" quality to her in that she could do no wrong and had any skill needed at the time to solve the problem.

I thought that this book was a lot of fun! This was actually my first experience with Matthew Reilly's work despite the fact that his books have been on my radar for quite some time. I have had a copy of this book for years but it somehow slipped through the cracks of my review schedule. I am glad that I finally got around to reading this one because it was incredibly entertaining.

I haven't read Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton but I have seen the movie several times. I don't usually like to make a lot of comparisons but this book had a lot of similarities to that story. It was different enough that I didn't feel like it was the same story but they had the same feel.

China has built a new zoo. It is a different kind of zoo that will end up changing the world. CJ, her brother, and a group of others are brought to the zoo to see just how different it really is. This zoo doesn't have your average zoo animals. This zoo is filled with all kinds of different dragons. Yes, dragons. During their visit to the zoo, things go very, very wrong.

This was a pretty exciting book that was filled with action which made it really entertaining. There were some real surprises along the way and I enjoyed piecing together exactly what was going on. I liked CJ and liked how her skills as a veterinarian helped her to navigate the situation she found herself in. I also found that I had a lot of respect and couldn't blame them for their actions.

Rich Orlow did a great job with this story. This was a really exciting and often intense book which I think he was able to take up another notch. I thought he handled all of the characters voices very well. I thought he had a very nice reading voice which I found easy to listen to for hours at a time. I think that I enjoyed the story just a bit more largely because of his narration.

I would recommend this book to others. I found this to be a highly entertaining tale that read like an action movie. I think those action readers that don't mind some similarities to well-known stories will enjoy this one. I definitely plan to read more of Matthew Reilly's work in the future.

I received a digital review copy of this book from Gallery, Threshold, Pocket Books via NetGalley and borrowed a copy of the audiobook from my local library.

Not the books fault but it just wasn't my cup of tea. The descriptions are gorgeous but I'm not a massive fan of action based reading. Passed it on to my husband who really enjoyed it and said it was a great holiday read.

<I>The Great Zoo of China</I> is certainly fast paced and full of action. Some more unbelievable than others. The storyline, as I now realize is more sci-fi, did not do much for me. The characters were not developed enough. Probably because the whole book was essentially about one day so there wasn't much time for development, I guess. Although, CJ, the main character was a badass female who saved the world. I'm pretty sure that may be the redeeming quality of this book.

The author, Matthew Reilly, is new to me. The title is what pulled me in. Who wouldn't enjoy a book about a great zoo? I knew it had to be something extraordinary, but I didn't realize quite how over the top it was going to be. Not being a huge sci-fi fan, I guess I should have done some more research other than the title and brief synopsis before agreeing to this book.

As I have read since, this book has been compared to Jurassic Park fanfiction. While I am a fan of Jurassic Park, I would not compare it with <I>The Great Zoo of China</I>. Because this wasn't my kind of book, doesn't mean it won't be yours. If you enjoy fast paced action involving lots of gore and mythical creatures, then this book is for you!

I received this book in exchange for an honest review, which has not altered my opinion of this book.

As soon as this book starts out, it immediately reminded me of Jurassic Park. I hate to say it, but it really didn’t feel as original as I had hoped it would. That being said, this book was very well written! There was non-stop action and I felt as though there was a movie going on in my head the entire time, which made this even more fun to read.

The characters in this book fell a little bit flat for me, unfortunately. I loved the fact that CJ was a female expert in her field and that she wasn’t one of your stereotypical book characters who looked perfect. Her brother is one of my favorites, mostly because he was the one who seemed to give real reactions where as the rest almost seemed to either hide them or were more predictable.

I have to say, overall this book was very well written, with action sequence after action sequence that really had the movie rolling through my head. I would recommend it to dragon lovers, but it just felt a bit predictable to me. 3.5 out of 5.

In many of Matthew Reilly's books you have to accept things which sometimes seem a little far-fetched. This is an extreme version of that - you have to suspend disbelief dramatically. If you can manage that, you will find it an excellent book.
Provided you are reading to be entertained, you will love this book.

Avery different and interesting novel based on a quite original concept even if, at times, there were touches of Jurassic Park. Really enjoyed the thrills and chases and found the characters believable. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys an adventure story with lots of cliff-hanging moments.

This book has an amazing concept and the opening and the world is really, really cool and interesting. I really enjoyed our protagonist and the ending is very satisfactory. The modern culture humour was entertaining also. Unfortunately though, the constant action really wore me down mentally, and from about the mid-way point my reading speed dropped significantly because it was just constant action and I needed slow moving moments now and again but they didn't come, so it was grating me down. I assume many people like myself (who don't know the actor and his style) will go into this book expecting a more fantasy-like structure and, like myself, will find themselves needing breaks between the action in order to take everything in and take a moment to breathe.